


The Princess and the Wolf

by LadyNorbert



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Arranged Marriage, Dreams, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-25
Updated: 2018-02-25
Packaged: 2019-03-24 01:12:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13800249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyNorbert/pseuds/LadyNorbert
Summary: In this AU, the Dalish princess Zarina Lavellan is betrothed to the Prince of Starkhaven. But she loves and is loved by another, who comes to see her on her wedding day.





	The Princess and the Wolf

**Author's Note:**

  * For [vivalaegghead](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vivalaegghead/gifts).



> This is a Valentine's gift for vivalaegghead, belatedly written. Zarina Lavellan is her OC in a universe where the Dalish have royalty and the Inquisition does not exist. I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

**The Princess and the Wolf**

* * *

 

It was for the good of the people, Zarina told herself. She gazed disinterestedly into the glass of her dressing room mirror, watching as two handmaidens carefully arranged her sunset-colored hair into an ornate style such as the human noblewomen preferred. A coronet of intricate silverite knotwork waited to adorn the confection they were creating, its matching necklace already encircling her throat. Draping folds of heavy velvet encased her slender figure; the fabric was as green as the Emerald Graves, and embroidered along the sleeves and hem with silver thread in the shapes of new leaves.

It was all for the good of the people.

The Dalish princess was fulfilling her destiny this day. Her betrothal to Sebastian, Prince of Starkhaven, had been a thing of long standing. By uniting her people with his, she was bringing fresh life to her troubled kin; they would have protection, shelter, everything they needed to survive. She in turn would put a child of the Dales on the throne of Starkhaven, ensuring her people's well-being for generations.

Her own... well, that was a secondary concern.

The problem, she had to admit while staring at her own reflection, was that she wasn't happy. She liked Sebastian well enough, respected him certainly, but she didn't love him. She never would. Not while the wolf prowled the edges of her consciousness.

A romance in dreams; that's what it mainly was. Night after night she entered a dark forest, and a many-eyed wolf met her on the path and guided her to a moonlit clearing. With every dream the details became sharper, the feelings became more real, and she watched with a thrill as the wolf stood on his back legs and his fur coat fell away to reveal an elf. He was not small and lithe, like her people had come to be in the generations of recent ages; he was taller, with a longer face, and built differently. Ancient armor encased sculpted limbs and torso, and his arms seized her without difficulty - not that she resisted.

Oh, she knew him. They had met, of course, on his visits to court. Zarina knew, somehow, that she would never have found him in her dreams if they had not first met in the waking world. No one knew quite from whence he came, but when he spoke, it mattered little. He could captivate an audience with his voice, speaking of history and offering counsel.

The Dread Wolf, they called him. A shadowy figure from the Dalish past, somehow stepping out of the dark recesses of history into the light of the present day. Wiser than kings and stronger than soldiers, he strolled into her life and took possession of her heart as though it had simply been waiting for him.  
Perhaps it had.

There had been an instant connection between them, she thought. He lingered at the Dalish court longer than he should have done, seeking her out as she wandered the gardens or met with advisors. Gradually they came to speak to one another alone, and he told her of the things he had seen, of the bygone glory days of the people. 

She had been impulsive, ignoring her betrothal, and kissed him one night under the full moon. He did not shy away, even though they both knew it was wrong. That single kiss had changed everything, opened some part of their souls which had been locked away and hidden from the light.

_May the Dread Wolf take you._

When she had prepared for the move to Sebastian's court, he had followed, offering himself as part of her guardian retinue. She had accepted without hesitation.

* * *

They left her to her thoughts, the handmaidens, a precious hour or so of solitude before she stood before a priestess and spoke vows. Hereafter she would belong, in many ways, to the world of men more than that of elves.

"You look pensive," said a voice.

She turned, and watched him emerge from the curtained recess at one end of her rooms. "How long have you been here?"

"The entire time. Today you will do what you must, _vhenan_."

"How can I bear it?"

"Because it is your duty. Because you are strong enough to endure."

"And what about you?"

His eyes grew sad. "I... I will be leaving. The people need me to be elsewhere, and I would not intrude upon your happiness."

"What happiness?" she demanded. "What happiness do you think I will find here, without you?"

" _Halam'shivanas_. The sweet sacrifice of duty, the happiness of doing that which benefits the people. The joy of a noble heart and mind being put to good purpose." He stood before her, and after a pause, he took her hands in his own. " _Ir abelas, ma vhenan. Mala suledin nadas_." He kissed her hands, then released them.

A brisk breeze scuttled in through the open window, and without thinking, Zarina turned to look at the briefly billowing curtains. When she turned back to him, he was gone.

In dreams, she thought, she would see him again. It would have to be enough.


End file.
